BASSENDEAN official Melissa Trivic’s “addiction” to hockey motivates her to push on after achieving her 100th international game milestone last month.
The 40-year-old became the fifth Australian woman to win the International Hockey Federation’s Golden Whistle award when she umpired the bronze medal match between China and Malaysia at the 2018 Women’s Asian Champions Trophy on May 20.
Trivic made her international debut at a test match between Australia and China in Adelaide in 2004.
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READ NOWShe has umpired at the Rio Olympics, World Cup, Commonwealth Games, World League Finals and in the Hockey WA Premier League for more than 30 years.
She said Rio and the 2014 World Cup in the Netherlands were the highlights of her career.
“The Rio 2016 Olympic Games – it is always what I wanted to achieve,” she said.
“The spectator experiences that I had, getting to see other sports, especially seeing Australia compete in the basketball and things like that, it was very good.
“World Cup in Holland (The Netherlands) in 2014 was fantastic, that was a men’s and women’s event.
“I think the stadium was a converted soccer stadium and it held 12,000 spectators.”
She would like to continue umpiring internationally while still enjoying and performing well.
“Selection is out of my hands, it is done by the International Hockey Federation, so it is just a waiting game to see if I get picked up by any other tournaments moving forward,” she said.
“The Australian players in the Australian Institute of Sport program based in Perth has definitely improved the domestic competition.
“To be honest, it is like an addiction.
“I just love hockey so much – I have been involved in it since I was five and even before that, but that was before technically when I was supposed to start playing.
“I just have a passion for it, I find it an amazing sport and umpiring allows me to stay involved in it.”
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